Earth-working machines, for example, excavators, continuous miners, and loaders, often include tracked undercarriages that facilitate movement of the machines over ground surfaces. Such track-type machines typically include tracks located on either side of the machine. Each track includes a chain having links pinned end-to-end forming a loop that extends around a drive sprocket at one end of the chain and an idler wheel located at the other end of the chain. Some machines may include additional idler wheels to guide the chain from the sprocket end to the idler wheel end. The chains often also include ground engaging track shoes connected to adjacent pairs of links. An engine associated with the machine typically drives the sprocket. Teeth on the sprocket engage with the links to rotate the chain, pushing the track shoes against a work surface and allowing the machine to be propelled in a forward or rearward direction.
Repeated contact between the sprocket teeth and the links causes the teeth and the links to wear over time, creating slack in the chains between the sprocket and the one or more idler wheels. Slack in the chains can cause the chains to wear excessively, break, or to slip off the drive sprocket and idler wheels. Repairing broken or displaced chains may require expensive and labor intensive service operations, which can place the machine out of service for a long time. Thus, minimizing accumulation of slack in the chains near the idler end becomes important to prevent slippage of the chains off the idler wheels and to prevent premature failure of the chains.
Track-type machines typically include runners adjacent the upper and lower portions of the track chain to guide the link members towards the idler wheels and away from the idler wheels. Often, however, these machines have an abrupt transition between the runners and the idler wheel, which allows slack in the track chain to accumulate adjacent the idler wheel.
The upper transition assembly of the present disclosure solves one or more of the problems set forth above and/or other problems of the prior art.